When I last saw the CK this morning at school, he had just stopped crying. Pentheus and I had walked both boys to school today, and while I was working with the WK's teacher on his health form (nothing bad, more on that below), Pentheus brought the CK to his class. About 20 minutes later, when I stopped by to see the CK's teacher, she told me that the CK had started crying a few minutes earlier and wouldn't tell her why. I asked the CK to come out in the hallway with me. I sat in a chair, the CK crawled into my lap, and he gave me a big hug. I tried to figure out what was wrong - I asked if he were angry at someone, and I asked if some of his mosquito bites were bothering him. I said I knew all of this (being in Israel, starting school, etc.) was really hard. Then the CK then told me the reason he was sad was because I hadn't said goodbye to him this morning. While I am sure he was upset about a combination of everything, including the lack of goodbye from me, felt terrible and apologized. That being said, in a weird way, I think it's kind of good that the CK was upset and crying; it's healthy to get all that emotion out.
Yesterday, the WK brought home a form from school and told us we needed to fill it out. Pentheus and I spent a lot of time figuring out what (we thought) the form said. It's hard to explain, but written Hebrew and spoken Hebrew are not exactly the same. Although the alphabet, words and letters are the same, spoken Hebrew is less formal, more conversational, and written Hebrew uses more formal words "meelot gevohah'ot" (literally, higher words), and complicated (at least for us) grammatical constructions.
At any rate, although Pentheus and I were fairly sure what the form was asking, we decided to work with someone at the school before we signed the form. I sat with the WK's teacher for about 15 minutes. The form asked typical questions (e.g., are there any limitations on physical activity, any regular medications, etc.). It also informed us that there were mandatory vaccinations ("cheesoneem") given to all kids in certain grades. Although there are none given in 5th grade (where the WK is), there are some vaccinations given in 2nd grade (where the CK is). The reason I even stopped by the CK's classroom was to make sure that she understood that we did not want the CK to receive any vaccinations, as he's already current with what he received in the States. I'm very glad I went to tell the CK's teacher, especially because I didn't know the CK was unhappy.
Speaking of learning Hebrew, I am attending an "Ulpahn" (Hebrew class) starting next week. The class is Monday and Wednesday mornings, 9-11 am, at the "mahtnahs" (community center) in Baaka, a neighborhood next to Katamon. I did a dry run of the walk to the mahtnahs, and it's about 15+ minutes from the dira. (I also inquired about the availability of kids' books in the English library there, and it looks like I have a library to which to take the boys!) My understanding about the Ulpan is that the focus will be on conversational Hebrew, but we'll need to see who the other people in the class are and at what level their Hebrew is. The class is 120 shekels (around $30) a month, so it's certainly not going to break the bank. Hebrew classes are typically subsidized by the government in order to encourage people to learn Hebrew. I had thought I wanted to take a class that met for more hours in the week, but now I think I am glad about this one. I will have some "formal" learning 4 hours a week, and will still be able to be with the kids in the afternoons and hopefully volunteer for a few hours every week as well.
The last few days have been filled with a lot of errands and taking care of things. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, I walked to Talpiyot (between 20-35 minutes, depending on where) each day and then took a cab back to the dira with my purchases. I bought some new pans for the kitchen, a blow dryer, groceries, and additional school supplies, plus I looked for shoes for Pentheus and slippers for the boys. I also spent an inordinate amount of time at 5-6 different hardware/window/ specialty/industrial shops and stores looking for a metal piece for a window latch to replace one of ours that broke. I bought and returned one potential replacement option that Pentheus and I were sure wouldn't work, and then bought another option yesterday. The various trips to stores involved a lot of walking in very hot temperatures and conversations with people in the store were in Hebrew (and suffice it to say that I don't know the name of any of the window latch parts in English, never mind Hebrew), so it was frustrating that we're still without a working latch. Tomorrow afternoon, the guy from the window shop is coming to the house to install (we hope) one that will work.
After the conversation with our neighbor and talking with Pentheus, I talked to the WK's teacher yesterday about having Rafael be his "buddy" at school and she thought it was a good idea. Rafael was over for a playdate yesterday afternoon, and he's a very sweet kid. Actually, almost all of the kids from the school have been nice kids, and I see them talking to the WK and CK when we drop them off in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon. Many of the kids have come up to me to tell me in English (halting as it is) that they are glad the boys are in their classes. When I went to the park yesterday with the boys and Rafael, there were at least half a dozen other boys at the park, too. They all hung out - some playing soccer, others chatting on the basketball court, etc. It seemed and felt a bit "normal," like something that could happen in Cambridge.
Except that there was a difference. When I took the boys to the park and saw all the other boys there, too, I looked around and realized that I was the only parent in sight! The other kids had come to the park after school to play with their friends. Some of them were walking home to dinner and others(including Rafael) were taking city buses home without any supervision. I figured that I didn't need to be there, so I left. I told the boys to be home by 6:15 and they were with no problems. And, today, much to the WK's great joy, we let him walk to and stay at the park for a couple hours alone. Here's to increased independence.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Day Two of School
Pentheus and I walked the boys to school and dropped them off with little fanfare. We still haven't seen the CK's teacher, but will make sure to wait until she arrives before leaving him tomorrow morning. Neither boy has complained, cried or indicated that he is unhappy so far, and when I have tried subtly to elicit what they are thinking, everything seems to be ok. As I noted earlier, Pentheus and I have tried to be extra patient with them, and we'll have to see how it goes.
As I think I wrote last week, our next door neighbor has suggested that the WK meet two boys from his class. The WK has had several playdates with Uri already. We've tried to arrange something with the other boy, Rafael, but haven't been successful. Our neighbor thinks Rafael would be a great match for the WK, especially in terms of being interested in sports. Also, Rafael is more outgoing than Uri. Although Rafael's English is very good (for a 5th grader), Rafael's parents don't speak a word of English, which has made it harder for us to connect. I spoke to Rafael's mother this evening, and the plan is for me to pick all three boys (WK, CK and Rafael) up from school tomorrow for a playdate in the park and "arteekeem" (popsicles, in case you have forgotten).
Our neighbor dropped by earlier this evening to say that her daughter (who is also in the same class as WK) came home today and said that Zohar (the boy with whom the WK's teacher has matched the WK) is not a good fit at all. Zohar is a big class clown, and his English is not very good. Her daughter didn't want to get involved and didn't want us to use her name if we talk to the teacher, but she doesn't think Zohar is a good match. Our neighbor thinks we should talk to the WK's teacher and suggest that she pair the WK with Rafael. It's interesting because, again, here's another example of an Israeli (even if our neighbor speaks English) not pulling punches and not being afraid to speak her mind. I'm not convinced that most of us would take the time to get as involved (and stay as involved) as our neighbor has been. I recognize that it's both good and bad.
While I was out this afternoon, I called Pentheus from our cell phone. (Oh, just realized I didn't post anything about our finally getting a cell phone! When we were in Talpiyot last week (when we rented the car), we saw that Rami Levy (the big supermarket store to which we drove the clerk at the car rental place) had a cell phone kiosk. We were still unable to purchase an "unlimited" plan without an Israeli credit card or bank account, but we were able to buy a pre-paid SIM for much less money than the other places were charging. We pay as we go for calls and texts (and it's much more expensive to call/text the US), but we're glad to have one as a way for Pentheus and me to keep in touch when one of us is out of the dira.)
Anyway, while I was out this afternoon, I called Pentheus. It must have been about 1:30 or so. Pentheus answered the phone and said, "Honey, I have good news and I have bad news. The good news is that the boys know how to walk home from school by themselves. The bad news is that we were misinformed about what time school closed today." Apparently, school let out at 12:40, and neither Pentheus nor I was there to meet the boys, so they walked back to the dira together. When we apologized to the boys, neither one seemed upset about it, and, in fact, the WK wants to use this as an example for why we should let him go to the park by himself (i.e., without the CK or us). The jury is still out on that.
When Pentheus and I talked about coming to Israel, we hoped that the experience would be good for the boys, help make them more independent and mature, and allow them to grow in ways we can't even imagine yet.The fact that the boys walked home from school alone today (with nary a complaint or angry comment) gives some credence to our decision.
By the way, there's a video here: http://news.walla.co.il/?w=/551/2561839 about Netanyahu's visit to the boys' school yesterday. In the IMRA link here: <http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=58037>, there's a transcription of what Netanyahu said at Szold (as well as at another school in Efrat). The second part of the video is where Jerusalem mayor Nir Barakat surprises Netanyahu by locating his report card from 6th grade at Szold.
As I think I wrote last week, our next door neighbor has suggested that the WK meet two boys from his class. The WK has had several playdates with Uri already. We've tried to arrange something with the other boy, Rafael, but haven't been successful. Our neighbor thinks Rafael would be a great match for the WK, especially in terms of being interested in sports. Also, Rafael is more outgoing than Uri. Although Rafael's English is very good (for a 5th grader), Rafael's parents don't speak a word of English, which has made it harder for us to connect. I spoke to Rafael's mother this evening, and the plan is for me to pick all three boys (WK, CK and Rafael) up from school tomorrow for a playdate in the park and "arteekeem" (popsicles, in case you have forgotten).
Our neighbor dropped by earlier this evening to say that her daughter (who is also in the same class as WK) came home today and said that Zohar (the boy with whom the WK's teacher has matched the WK) is not a good fit at all. Zohar is a big class clown, and his English is not very good. Her daughter didn't want to get involved and didn't want us to use her name if we talk to the teacher, but she doesn't think Zohar is a good match. Our neighbor thinks we should talk to the WK's teacher and suggest that she pair the WK with Rafael. It's interesting because, again, here's another example of an Israeli (even if our neighbor speaks English) not pulling punches and not being afraid to speak her mind. I'm not convinced that most of us would take the time to get as involved (and stay as involved) as our neighbor has been. I recognize that it's both good and bad.
While I was out this afternoon, I called Pentheus from our cell phone. (Oh, just realized I didn't post anything about our finally getting a cell phone! When we were in Talpiyot last week (when we rented the car), we saw that Rami Levy (the big supermarket store to which we drove the clerk at the car rental place) had a cell phone kiosk. We were still unable to purchase an "unlimited" plan without an Israeli credit card or bank account, but we were able to buy a pre-paid SIM for much less money than the other places were charging. We pay as we go for calls and texts (and it's much more expensive to call/text the US), but we're glad to have one as a way for Pentheus and me to keep in touch when one of us is out of the dira.)
Anyway, while I was out this afternoon, I called Pentheus. It must have been about 1:30 or so. Pentheus answered the phone and said, "Honey, I have good news and I have bad news. The good news is that the boys know how to walk home from school by themselves. The bad news is that we were misinformed about what time school closed today." Apparently, school let out at 12:40, and neither Pentheus nor I was there to meet the boys, so they walked back to the dira together. When we apologized to the boys, neither one seemed upset about it, and, in fact, the WK wants to use this as an example for why we should let him go to the park by himself (i.e., without the CK or us). The jury is still out on that.
When Pentheus and I talked about coming to Israel, we hoped that the experience would be good for the boys, help make them more independent and mature, and allow them to grow in ways we can't even imagine yet.The fact that the boys walked home from school alone today (with nary a complaint or angry comment) gives some credence to our decision.
By the way, there's a video here: http://news.walla.co.il/?w=/551/2561839 about Netanyahu's visit to the boys' school yesterday. In the IMRA link here: <http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=58037>, there's a transcription of what Netanyahu said at Szold (as well as at another school in Efrat). The second part of the video is where Jerusalem mayor Nir Barakat surprises Netanyahu by locating his report card from 6th grade at Szold.
Monday, August 27, 2012
"Fun but a little bit scary"
The boys (plus Pentheus and I) made it through the first day of school! Actually, from all accounts. the day went fairly well. The CK said it was "fun but a little bit scary" and the WK said it went "pretty good." (Considering he's in 5th grade in a foreign country, I ignored my inclination to correct him that the day went "pretty well.")
I left the dira around 11:25 am to pick the boys up from school. When I passed the high school (where this morning I had heard the band and the singing), the students were singing "Hatikvah" (The Hope), the Israeli national anthem. I have to admit that the moment made me pause, and I was very moved. My eyes immediately filled with tears as I took it in - here I was in ISRAEL listening to Israeli kids singing Hatikvah while I walked to the school where MY kids were enrolled. I calmed down enough to call Pentheus and clean myself up a bit before I got the boys' school. (I knew the WK would not be happy with me if I were crying when I picked him up, even if they weren't sad tears.)
When I walked down the steps outside the school, where the boys and I had planned to meet, I asked one of the security guards how it had gone today. Her response was "Bseder gamoor. Meah chooz." (Totally fine, 100%.), which I was glad to hear. The WK came out of the building first and the CK followed within a minute or two. Both quickly informed me that they did NOT need to have worn long pants and that they were really hot!
Turns out only the 1st and 6th graders needed to wear long pants because they were the only kids who met with Netanyahu and performed a song for him. None of the kids from the other grades even saw him and wouldn't have known he had been there if it weren't for all of the fuss. Although I must admit I was a bit disappointed that the boys didn't get to see him, it was probably just as well. I've attached below the link to the article about Netanyahu's visit.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4273442,00.html
From what we could glean from the CK, overall, his day was okay, primarily because it involved his getting a lollipop. Although the kids in his class spoke almost no English, somehow the CK and two other boys were able to negotiate a switch in lollipops due to flavor preferences. I am pretty sure the CK ended up with "doovdoovahneem" (cherry) instead of his original "shoko" (chocolate) and that he was pleased about it. The CK said he couldn't remember any of the names of his classmates, but that he had written a book with pictures about his "cheetah" (cheetah!) with colored pencils. The CK asked that we come to his class tomorrow morning to check out the book. We'll also check in with his teacher about what we can do to make it easier, etc.
The WK said the class had done an exercise in which each of them had to complete the Hebrew sentences "B'shahnah haba'ah, ahnee rotzeh _____." (This year, I want to ________.) and "B'shahnah haba'ah, ahnee mekahveh." (This year, I hope to ________.) The Hebrew sentences were written on the board with the blanks following. The WK told us he had completed the sentences in Hebrew with "ledahbear eevreet" (speak Hebrew) and "lesahchek kadoor bahsees" (play baseball). Good for him!
Per the WK, we had put all the wrong school supplies in his backpack and we should have sent a water bottle. Tonight Pentheus and I repacked the WK's backpack and will see if it meets his approval in the morning. I was pleased that he complained about us because that was exactly what he would have done in Cambridge!
The CK was clearly charged up about starting school. He wanted to go buy a Hebrew-English dictionary and then used the Hebrew-English translation app on my phone. The CK would look up a word in English, figure out how to translate into Hebrew, and then meticulously copy the Hebrew word into a journal that he pleaded we buy for him. It was very sweet.
I'm not sure I have mentioned yet, but we have had two lovely house guests, the daughters of friends of ours in Cambridge, for a couple of days. One daughter is in Israel for the next 10 months on a program, and her sister is returning from vacationing in Israel to the States tonight to get ready for her junior year of high school. It's been a lot of fun to spend time with them, and we have all enjoyed it. I'm working on convincing the one who is staying in Israel to come back to Jerusalem before her program starts, so that I can have some girl time. While I love my boys, it's nice to be with girls sometimes, too. I'm hoping there is a trip to the Naot store in my future! (http://www.naot.com/)
I left the dira around 11:25 am to pick the boys up from school. When I passed the high school (where this morning I had heard the band and the singing), the students were singing "Hatikvah" (The Hope), the Israeli national anthem. I have to admit that the moment made me pause, and I was very moved. My eyes immediately filled with tears as I took it in - here I was in ISRAEL listening to Israeli kids singing Hatikvah while I walked to the school where MY kids were enrolled. I calmed down enough to call Pentheus and clean myself up a bit before I got the boys' school. (I knew the WK would not be happy with me if I were crying when I picked him up, even if they weren't sad tears.)
When I walked down the steps outside the school, where the boys and I had planned to meet, I asked one of the security guards how it had gone today. Her response was "Bseder gamoor. Meah chooz." (Totally fine, 100%.), which I was glad to hear. The WK came out of the building first and the CK followed within a minute or two. Both quickly informed me that they did NOT need to have worn long pants and that they were really hot!
Turns out only the 1st and 6th graders needed to wear long pants because they were the only kids who met with Netanyahu and performed a song for him. None of the kids from the other grades even saw him and wouldn't have known he had been there if it weren't for all of the fuss. Although I must admit I was a bit disappointed that the boys didn't get to see him, it was probably just as well. I've attached below the link to the article about Netanyahu's visit.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4273442,00.html
From what we could glean from the CK, overall, his day was okay, primarily because it involved his getting a lollipop. Although the kids in his class spoke almost no English, somehow the CK and two other boys were able to negotiate a switch in lollipops due to flavor preferences. I am pretty sure the CK ended up with "doovdoovahneem" (cherry) instead of his original "shoko" (chocolate) and that he was pleased about it. The CK said he couldn't remember any of the names of his classmates, but that he had written a book with pictures about his "cheetah" (cheetah!) with colored pencils. The CK asked that we come to his class tomorrow morning to check out the book. We'll also check in with his teacher about what we can do to make it easier, etc.
The WK said the class had done an exercise in which each of them had to complete the Hebrew sentences "B'shahnah haba'ah, ahnee rotzeh _____." (This year, I want to ________.) and "B'shahnah haba'ah, ahnee mekahveh." (This year, I hope to ________.) The Hebrew sentences were written on the board with the blanks following. The WK told us he had completed the sentences in Hebrew with "ledahbear eevreet" (speak Hebrew) and "lesahchek kadoor bahsees" (play baseball). Good for him!
Per the WK, we had put all the wrong school supplies in his backpack and we should have sent a water bottle. Tonight Pentheus and I repacked the WK's backpack and will see if it meets his approval in the morning. I was pleased that he complained about us because that was exactly what he would have done in Cambridge!
The CK was clearly charged up about starting school. He wanted to go buy a Hebrew-English dictionary and then used the Hebrew-English translation app on my phone. The CK would look up a word in English, figure out how to translate into Hebrew, and then meticulously copy the Hebrew word into a journal that he pleaded we buy for him. It was very sweet.
I'm not sure I have mentioned yet, but we have had two lovely house guests, the daughters of friends of ours in Cambridge, for a couple of days. One daughter is in Israel for the next 10 months on a program, and her sister is returning from vacationing in Israel to the States tonight to get ready for her junior year of high school. It's been a lot of fun to spend time with them, and we have all enjoyed it. I'm working on convincing the one who is staying in Israel to come back to Jerusalem before her program starts, so that I can have some girl time. While I love my boys, it's nice to be with girls sometimes, too. I'm hoping there is a trip to the Naot store in my future! (http://www.naot.com/)
First day of school
In another hour, we will know how it went! We woke them up early and they were in pretty good moods. Today they had to wear the white shirt with the school decal and long pants. We're not exactly sure why the long pants, but it's probably so that they kids look better for the media pics.
Pentheus gave the boys some cereal for breakfast while I made their "snack" for today. On a typical school day, they have two breaks for food. The first break is at 10 am and the kids eat "aroochaht eser" (literally, 10:00 meal) and then they have "aroochaht tzoharayeem" (lunch) around 12:00 (I think). When we asked other parents and kids which types of food to send, everyone said sandwiches, pita bread, fruit and maybe a yogurt. Last week we tried to buy lunchboxes for the boys, but it seems school kids (at least the ones in Jerusalem) don't use lunch boxes. We specifically asked at stores, and they just don't have them. No one seems to use "kahrchoneem" (ice-packs) either.
At any rate, we took a few pictures before we left the house today. We told the boys that we were very proud of them for doing this and that we know it won't be easy. At that point, the CK demanded (I am using his words) a "family hug" and the WK said he was proud of Pentheus and me for taking our family to Israel for 5 months. It was a sweet moment. I will attach a few pics later.
As we walked the boys to school, there were many other families out and about. We really could feel the excitement and anticipation as all of the families walked their kids to school, too. The Szold School is about a half block away from one of the high schools, and the high school had a band playing, balloons decorating the entrance, and the high school kids were singing a traditional Israeli song "Haveinu Shalom Alaichem" (literally, May Our Coming Be in Peace - guess it flows better in Hebrew).
As we had been told, there was a lot of security near the Szold School. There were many police officers, as well as Army personnel. The school had set up two entrances for today (with all the others locked), one for those who would actually be close to Netanyahu and another for the others. We were definitely in the line for the "others." Although it was clear that the security personnel looked each of us up and down as we walked through the door, I was very surprised that we did not need to go through security and/or x-ray machines.
The WK wanted to walk into his class by himself, so Pentheus and I took the CK to the library. First and second grade classrooms are in a different building, but today the youngest grades met in the library for security reasons. We didn't see the CK's teacher or anyone we knew, so we helped the CK find a desk and he sat down in the chair. His backpack was slung over the back of the chair and he just sat there facing forward. The CK asked for a hug from me and Pentheus kissed his head, and we left. After we checked to make sure the WK had made it to his room, we tip-toed past the library again to see how the CK was doing. He was still just sitting there in the chair, facing forward. It was a bit sad, I have to admit.
When we went to check on the WK, he was doing ok. His teacher, Yael, told us she had "assigned" another 5th grade boy, Zohar*, to pair with the WK to show him the ropes. Yael also indicated that we should bring a Tanach (the Hebrew Bible) in English for the WK to use, a Math book (which hopefully we can get from his teacher in Cambridge) and some English books for him to read during the day. He did not want us to make a fuss or even to talk to him, so we waved goodbye and left.
I will be leaving the dira in about 10 minutes to pick the boys up. Hope they had a good day.
*not his real name
Pentheus gave the boys some cereal for breakfast while I made their "snack" for today. On a typical school day, they have two breaks for food. The first break is at 10 am and the kids eat "aroochaht eser" (literally, 10:00 meal) and then they have "aroochaht tzoharayeem" (lunch) around 12:00 (I think). When we asked other parents and kids which types of food to send, everyone said sandwiches, pita bread, fruit and maybe a yogurt. Last week we tried to buy lunchboxes for the boys, but it seems school kids (at least the ones in Jerusalem) don't use lunch boxes. We specifically asked at stores, and they just don't have them. No one seems to use "kahrchoneem" (ice-packs) either.
At any rate, we took a few pictures before we left the house today. We told the boys that we were very proud of them for doing this and that we know it won't be easy. At that point, the CK demanded (I am using his words) a "family hug" and the WK said he was proud of Pentheus and me for taking our family to Israel for 5 months. It was a sweet moment. I will attach a few pics later.
As we walked the boys to school, there were many other families out and about. We really could feel the excitement and anticipation as all of the families walked their kids to school, too. The Szold School is about a half block away from one of the high schools, and the high school had a band playing, balloons decorating the entrance, and the high school kids were singing a traditional Israeli song "Haveinu Shalom Alaichem" (literally, May Our Coming Be in Peace - guess it flows better in Hebrew).
As we had been told, there was a lot of security near the Szold School. There were many police officers, as well as Army personnel. The school had set up two entrances for today (with all the others locked), one for those who would actually be close to Netanyahu and another for the others. We were definitely in the line for the "others." Although it was clear that the security personnel looked each of us up and down as we walked through the door, I was very surprised that we did not need to go through security and/or x-ray machines.
The WK wanted to walk into his class by himself, so Pentheus and I took the CK to the library. First and second grade classrooms are in a different building, but today the youngest grades met in the library for security reasons. We didn't see the CK's teacher or anyone we knew, so we helped the CK find a desk and he sat down in the chair. His backpack was slung over the back of the chair and he just sat there facing forward. The CK asked for a hug from me and Pentheus kissed his head, and we left. After we checked to make sure the WK had made it to his room, we tip-toed past the library again to see how the CK was doing. He was still just sitting there in the chair, facing forward. It was a bit sad, I have to admit.
When we went to check on the WK, he was doing ok. His teacher, Yael, told us she had "assigned" another 5th grade boy, Zohar*, to pair with the WK to show him the ropes. Yael also indicated that we should bring a Tanach (the Hebrew Bible) in English for the WK to use, a Math book (which hopefully we can get from his teacher in Cambridge) and some English books for him to read during the day. He did not want us to make a fuss or even to talk to him, so we waved goodbye and left.
I will be leaving the dira in about 10 minutes to pick the boys up. Hope they had a good day.
*not his real name
Sunday, August 26, 2012
One more day, one more day
I know that in my previous post, I wrote how I think I will miss the boys when they begin school tomorrow. While that is likely true, I also am looking forward to it! The boys were difficult and cranky this morning, and we had a hard time motivating to get out of the dira so that Pentheus could work. The CK was in a bad mood and complained a lot, which wasn't much fun. I wish I could say his mood improved radically as the day went on, but it didn't. Kids in Israel begin learning English in schools in the 4th grade, and I think it's just very hard, especially for the CK who knows that the kids in his class won't speak any English. Also, I think we're all nervous on the first day of school. I tried to be extra patient, but am not sure I succeeded.
Uri, the boy from the WK's class with whom we played last week, called to see if we wanted to go to a park, so we walked to his house to get him. We actually went to 2 different parks with Uri. At the first one, "Gan Hachatool Shemen" (The Fat Cat Park - so named because there is a statue of a fat cat) Uri and the WK played ping pong with real paddles this time (see earlier post about using Frisbees as paddles), but without a ping pong table. They sort of hit the ball back and forth and tried not to have the ball touch the ground. The boys also played Frisbee. The CK had brought his cheetah stuffie, and played with it a bit. I had brought "lachmahniyot eem shoko" (rolls with chocolate spread), "necktareenot" (nectarines - sometimes the words are more English than Hebrew) and "mayeem kahreem" (cold water) for us to eat/drink because it was very hot - 97 F. After a bit, we went to Gan Tsfeera (the Park on Tsfeera Street) because it had a lot of playground things to do. I learned the words for the spinning thing (I don't know it's called in English, but you get on it and turn the middle circle to go fast in circles), slide, ladder, and swing sets (actually, I already knew that one). At around 1:45, we called it a day and walked Uri home. Then we went back to the dira to meet Pentheus for lunch and some downtime.
Many of the major holidays in Judaism (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simchat Torah) occur in the Fall, and we are trying to find a synagogue we like so that we can "join" a place for the holidays and find a community. We tried out two synagogues on this Shabbat. Friday night we went to Eretz Chemda, a fairly orthodox synagogue very close to the house. There were very few people, especially women, there for the Friday night service. The "mecheetzah" (barrier that separates men and women during prayer) was horizontal which meant that the men were in the front of the room, and the women were at the back of the room behind white panels (as opposed to vertical where the men are on one side and the women next to them on the other). I was the only woman there for the first 20 minutes of the service, and I wasn't getting much out of the experience. At least when the mecheetzah is vertical, the women can typically see what is happening at the front of the room; I couldn't see anything except the white barrier. Eventually, a few other women joined me. I had thought it was going to be more progressive but I was wrong.
Saturday morning we went back to Kol Haneshema, the reform synagogue where we had gone the first Friday night in Israel (where I ran into friends from years ago). We went back there because we wanted to see what a Saturday morning service is like. The people were again very friendly although there was a much older crowd than we expected. Apparently, because this is the last weekend before school starts, many people are on vacation. At any rate, the boys were asked again to open and close the ark where the Torah is kept. The sermon about this week's Torah reading was in Hebrew, and Pentheus and I were pleased that we could sort of follow it. We didn't get a lot of the words but certainly got the gist of it. Pentheus remarked that if we joined a shul where the sermons were in Hebrew, our language skill might increase!
Saturday afternoon, we had lunch with Amos and Channa, our neighbors across the street. It was lovely to be invited over. Their youngest son, a junior in high school, and their "uncle" joined us. (While Shlomo was introduced as an "uncle" we got the feeling he was a longtime family friend and not a "real" uncle.) Channa had prepared lunch, and, clearly, she didn't know much about our tastes. Poor Channa served quite possibly our least liked foods - mushroom crepes, hot tuna casserole, and mushroom/rice stuffed eggplant. I felt badly for the boys - even I wanted to make a face at the selections. Amos was very kind when he saw the boys weren't eating and said quickly in Hebrew that "no-one needed to eat anything that he didn't like." Our family had a lot of salad and challah at the meal, although Pentheus really liked the tuna casserole. Amos and Channa have a new kitten who has been living with them for 3 days. The kitten (as of yet unnamed) had a blast with the CK and WK, as they pulled strings and played games with her. (By the way, the dog Tsiyon that the CK likes so much turns out to be Amos's daughter's dog. At the end of our lunch, Tsiyon came over to meet unnamed kitten. We're not sure yet how it went.)
What was very interesting to me was that at one point, Amos asked Pentheus and me why we were taking this 5 month adventure. We don't really have a great answer to that except that we had the opportunity and wanted to do something. Then Amos asked us why we chose Israel as the place to go. We had to stop to think for a minute. Honestly, we never considered or discussed going any place other than Israel. We both feel connected to Israel and our Judaism, we speak Hebrew, and we wanted our family to live here for a while. We don't have a better answer than that.
Tomorrow I'll write about my birthday and other stuff going on, if I get a chance, but I want to close now to get some sleep. We're all getting up early tomorrow morning for the first day of school and for the boys to see Prime Minister Netanyahu! One very funny brother-in-law suggested that in order to make the first day easier, that we should teach each boy one sentence in Hebrew; that way, the boys could have something to say. I thought it was a great idea. My brother-in-law then suggested that the WK's Hebrew sentence should be "Stop the settlements!" and the CK's sentence, "End the occupation!" He further suggested that the boys shout their Hebrew sentences when Netanyahu is around. That would make for a memorable first day!
Oh, the box of books I sent on 30 July arrived today. We now have 28 books for the boys and a few for Pentheus and me. We feel like we need to ration them, as the CK wanted to read all of them today!
Wish everyone luck tomorrow!
Uri, the boy from the WK's class with whom we played last week, called to see if we wanted to go to a park, so we walked to his house to get him. We actually went to 2 different parks with Uri. At the first one, "Gan Hachatool Shemen" (The Fat Cat Park - so named because there is a statue of a fat cat) Uri and the WK played ping pong with real paddles this time (see earlier post about using Frisbees as paddles), but without a ping pong table. They sort of hit the ball back and forth and tried not to have the ball touch the ground. The boys also played Frisbee. The CK had brought his cheetah stuffie, and played with it a bit. I had brought "lachmahniyot eem shoko" (rolls with chocolate spread), "necktareenot" (nectarines - sometimes the words are more English than Hebrew) and "mayeem kahreem" (cold water) for us to eat/drink because it was very hot - 97 F. After a bit, we went to Gan Tsfeera (the Park on Tsfeera Street) because it had a lot of playground things to do. I learned the words for the spinning thing (I don't know it's called in English, but you get on it and turn the middle circle to go fast in circles), slide, ladder, and swing sets (actually, I already knew that one). At around 1:45, we called it a day and walked Uri home. Then we went back to the dira to meet Pentheus for lunch and some downtime.
Many of the major holidays in Judaism (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simchat Torah) occur in the Fall, and we are trying to find a synagogue we like so that we can "join" a place for the holidays and find a community. We tried out two synagogues on this Shabbat. Friday night we went to Eretz Chemda, a fairly orthodox synagogue very close to the house. There were very few people, especially women, there for the Friday night service. The "mecheetzah" (barrier that separates men and women during prayer) was horizontal which meant that the men were in the front of the room, and the women were at the back of the room behind white panels (as opposed to vertical where the men are on one side and the women next to them on the other). I was the only woman there for the first 20 minutes of the service, and I wasn't getting much out of the experience. At least when the mecheetzah is vertical, the women can typically see what is happening at the front of the room; I couldn't see anything except the white barrier. Eventually, a few other women joined me. I had thought it was going to be more progressive but I was wrong.
Saturday morning we went back to Kol Haneshema, the reform synagogue where we had gone the first Friday night in Israel (where I ran into friends from years ago). We went back there because we wanted to see what a Saturday morning service is like. The people were again very friendly although there was a much older crowd than we expected. Apparently, because this is the last weekend before school starts, many people are on vacation. At any rate, the boys were asked again to open and close the ark where the Torah is kept. The sermon about this week's Torah reading was in Hebrew, and Pentheus and I were pleased that we could sort of follow it. We didn't get a lot of the words but certainly got the gist of it. Pentheus remarked that if we joined a shul where the sermons were in Hebrew, our language skill might increase!
Saturday afternoon, we had lunch with Amos and Channa, our neighbors across the street. It was lovely to be invited over. Their youngest son, a junior in high school, and their "uncle" joined us. (While Shlomo was introduced as an "uncle" we got the feeling he was a longtime family friend and not a "real" uncle.) Channa had prepared lunch, and, clearly, she didn't know much about our tastes. Poor Channa served quite possibly our least liked foods - mushroom crepes, hot tuna casserole, and mushroom/rice stuffed eggplant. I felt badly for the boys - even I wanted to make a face at the selections. Amos was very kind when he saw the boys weren't eating and said quickly in Hebrew that "no-one needed to eat anything that he didn't like." Our family had a lot of salad and challah at the meal, although Pentheus really liked the tuna casserole. Amos and Channa have a new kitten who has been living with them for 3 days. The kitten (as of yet unnamed) had a blast with the CK and WK, as they pulled strings and played games with her. (By the way, the dog Tsiyon that the CK likes so much turns out to be Amos's daughter's dog. At the end of our lunch, Tsiyon came over to meet unnamed kitten. We're not sure yet how it went.)
What was very interesting to me was that at one point, Amos asked Pentheus and me why we were taking this 5 month adventure. We don't really have a great answer to that except that we had the opportunity and wanted to do something. Then Amos asked us why we chose Israel as the place to go. We had to stop to think for a minute. Honestly, we never considered or discussed going any place other than Israel. We both feel connected to Israel and our Judaism, we speak Hebrew, and we wanted our family to live here for a while. We don't have a better answer than that.
Tomorrow I'll write about my birthday and other stuff going on, if I get a chance, but I want to close now to get some sleep. We're all getting up early tomorrow morning for the first day of school and for the boys to see Prime Minister Netanyahu! One very funny brother-in-law suggested that in order to make the first day easier, that we should teach each boy one sentence in Hebrew; that way, the boys could have something to say. I thought it was a great idea. My brother-in-law then suggested that the WK's Hebrew sentence should be "Stop the settlements!" and the CK's sentence, "End the occupation!" He further suggested that the boys shout their Hebrew sentences when Netanyahu is around. That would make for a memorable first day!
Oh, the box of books I sent on 30 July arrived today. We now have 28 books for the boys and a few for Pentheus and me. We feel like we need to ration them, as the CK wanted to read all of them today!
Wish everyone luck tomorrow!
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Our time with wheels
I haven't posted since Monday night (our time) and want to catch up a bit. The past few days have been busy and fun. On Tuesday morning, I took the boys to one of the nearby parks. We call it the "Moshava Park" because it is across the street from the "Moshava" an apartment building complex about a 10 minute walk from the dira. Pentheus had purchased a soccer ball for the boys, and they played soccer on the asphalt court for a while. It has been very hot in Jerusalem - 92-97 F each day, and we took lots of water breaks. (It's supposed to be 100+ this weekend - glad the dira has a/c!) The Moshava Park also has a ping pong table with a concrete net (no balls get stuck in there!), so we played a bunch of games of table tennis.
Later that afternoon, the boys, Pentheus and I walked 20 minutes to "Canyon Hadar" (the Hadar Mall) to do some shopping. The Canyon is technically in Talpiyot, another neighborhood in Jerusalem. The Szold School had given us a list of school supplies for the boys and suggested we go to Chanan (name of the store) in that mall and ask one of clerks for help. Both boys needed "machberot" (notebooks) and "machberot chesbonim" (notebooks for Math). Because the Hebrew language goes from right to left (as opposed to English which goes left to right), it was strange to see the notebooks open from the "wrong" side. Both boys also needed pencils, binders, scissors, rulers, etc. The CW was happy because his list included oil pastels, as well as colored pencils, and the WK was psyched to hear his list included a flash drive. It was funny because as we went through the items on the list, the clerk kept saying to me in Hebrew things like, "Really, you don't have any pencils in the house?" and "Surely, you don't need paper - you must already have some at home." Alas, we had almost nothing in the house except the few markers and crayons that we brought from Cambridge. We bought a LOT of supplies, so many, in fact, that when we paid, the owner of the store threw in a complete art set for the boys to use as a bonus.
Since we arrived in Israel, we've been in search of a good Frisbee. We've purchased a few crappy ones, including one that cracked the moment we took it out of the plastic bag it came in. (I guess we shouldn't have expected much; it was 10 shekels or about $2.50.) Some Cambridge friends who were in Israel on vacation for a few weeks brought the boys' baseball gloves, so we've also been looking for baseballs. Pentheus had been to numerous sports shops but hadn't found anything, so while we were at the Canyon, we checked out other stores with no success. Once we left the Canyon, we saw numerous signs for "Beit Tsatsuiyee" (House of Toys) but despite walking up and down hills and in and out of shopping plazas, we never found the store, and we ran out of time to look further.
We then took a taxi to the Thrifty Rental Car place in Talpiyot to pick up a car for us to drive to Zichron Yaakov on Wednesday. (More on that below.) Arranging for the rental car and picking it up was relatively easy. While we were signing the contract, the female clerk helping us asked where we would be going, how many kilometers we would drive, etc. We told her we were driving to Zichron Yaakov on Wednesday but that night (Tuesday night) we were going to take advantage of having the car to go grocery shopping at one of the big supermarkets in Talpiyot. (So far, we've had to walk to and from the smaller grocery stores in our neighborhood, and then either pull the "agallah" (kind of a backpack on wheels) or arrange for the groceries to be delivered.) At that point, the female clerk sitting next to the clerk who was helping us, asked if we were going to Rami Levy, and if we were, could she get a ride there as she had some shopping to do. I thought she was joking and said, "sure." A few minutes later, she logged out of her computer, went to get her purse and said in Hebrew, "OK, I am ready." So, we took her to Rami Levy with us! I told the boys that I don't think something like that would happen in Cambridge, no matter how nice people are! "Rahk b'yisrael" (Only in Israel)!
We also went to "Big Shop" (that's what it is called in Hebrew, too) to get the boys' uniforms for school. To be fair, the uniform is simply a solid color shirt with an iron-on decal with the school's logo and name. On the first day of school, plus holidays, special days, etc. the boys need to wear white shirts with Szold's decal. Twice a week, the boys have P.E., for which they need to wear light blue shirts with the decal. The other 3 days, the boys can wear any color shirt as long as it has the decal. We ended up buying 14 shirts (7 for each boy) and then standing in a long line for the decals to be ironed on. Even if we had an iron in the dira, everyone has them done at "stations" in the stores. Luckily the shirts are relatively inexpensive - 15.99 shekels/each which is around $4.00 a shirt. Plus, for each 100 shekels you spend, you get one t-shirt for 1.99 shekels or around $0.50.
In Jerusalem (and I think in most other cities, too), public schools are usually 6 days a week - Sunday through Friday with Saturday off for the Jewish Sabbath. The Szold School is Sunday through Friday from 8:05 am - 2:20 pm, with early release at 12:40 pm every Tuesday and Friday. As I wrote earlier, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu is coming to the boys' school for the first day. The kids have to be there by 7:20 am because at 7:30 the doors are locked for security purposes. Parents are not allowed to be there.
I had kind of hoped I could stay for Netanyahu's visit, but I understand why they don't want any parents there. While I am sure the boys will be okay, I also kind of wanted to be around at least for the early part of the day in case they "needed" me. It sounds a bit silly now that I write it out, but we want to do what we can to make the transition to school easier for the boys. To be honest, I'd be very, very nervous going to any new school on the first day, never mind when I don't speak the language! Pentheus and I figure that there will be some acting out in the dira, and we're preparing to be extra patient with the WK and the CK. We know the transitions are hard on all of us.
Yesterday, the family drove to Zicharon Yaakov to visit with some friends with whom Pentheus worked when he lived in Jerusalem and worked for Digital in 1990-1991. The ride took a little more than an hour and a half. Israeli drivers are crazy -- I mean way, way more than Boston-crazy. Cars wove in an out of lanes on the highway while going 160+ km/hour (100+ mph); one driver honked his horn relentlessly to let the car next to his know he was unhappy with his driving skills; people invented lanes that weren't there and tailgated so closely. I have not yet summoned my courage to drive in Israel - le'at, le'at...
The day was a lot of fun. There were five families, with a total of 13 kids, who met at Pentheus's friend's house in Dor, a small town near Zichron Yaakov. Dor is so small that there are only 4 streets, no house numbers, and the town gate closes at 8 pm. We hung out, had tea and lemon squares, and then went to the beach. The beach (actually on the grounds of Kibbutz Nachsholim) was beautiful - soft (although wicked hot) sand with the gorgeous blue/green, temperate Mediterranean Sea water. We were at the beach for a couple of hours. The boys had a great time body-surfing in the water and exploring the nearby fort with all the fathers and other kids.
The plan had been for 4 of the families to have a late lunch together at an Italian restaurant in "downtown" Zichron. The reservation was for 14 people at 2 pm. We didn't even get to the beach until after 12:15, so I knew we wouldn't make it on time. Pentheus's friend had twice changed the reservation, first to 2:30 and then to 3:00. We arrived at the restaurant just after 4 pm, but it didn't seem to be a big deal. His friend had told everyone in advance about the Groupon available for the restaurant, and we used it to get a pretty good deal - 164 shekels for 4 entrees (no kids' meals available at the restaurant anyway), 2 big salads, and lots of "limonana" a lemonade with mint kind of slushie. That's about $10 a person; I don't know how the restaurant makes any money. After dinner, the families wandered around the "midrachov" with shops, restaurants, galleries and parks. The midrachov is essentially a pedestrian mall where no cars are allowed. Of course, we got "gleeda" (ice-cream) which was delicious, and then ended up at a playground.
We drove (okay, actually, Pentheus drove) back to the dira and arrived just after 10 pm. Both boys had fallen asleep in the car. Unfortunately, we couldn't find a parking space close to the dira, and had to wake the boys up to walk a couple of blocks. We were all exhausted after a day in the sun and went to sleep. While we had hoped to sleep late this morning, at around 7:45 am, there was incessant honking outside our open windows. Apparently, the garbage truck had blocked the street, and the cars behind it were determined to keep on the horn until the truck moved. I am not exaggerating to say that the horn lasted for over 3 minutes. So much for sleeping late...
We're a few days into the Hebrew month of Elul. Because Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur come in the next month, Tishrei, it's traditional to blow the shofar (ram's horn) each day to begin preparing spiritually for the big holidays. In Cambridge, if the boys behaved in the morning, they would get to blow our shofar in the morning before camp or school, but we did not bring the shofar to Israel with us. This morning, after all the car honking, WK said we got to hear the "sho-car" instead of the shofar.
Pentheus worked all day today, while the boys and I kept busy. The boys had a shower and bath, which they needed desperately, and we watched a little TV ("The Weakest Link" on the BBC channel). Then we packed sandwiches, pretzels and cold water, and headed to the Moshava park for soccer, table tennis and hanging out. Although we will be glad when the boys have school, I think I will miss being with them as much as I have been in Israel. It's been fun to go to the park, downtown and some of the Jerusalem sites and just to spend time with them.
Late afternoon, Pentheus returned the rental car and then met us on the Emek for dinner. We went back to the Pizza Italie place (where the woman wasn't so nice) because the boys loved the pasta. Afterwards, the boys and Pentheus got more "gleeda" and I had a "natool" (decaf coffee). I've only had decaf coffee a couple of times since we arrived in Jerusalem, and I enjoyed the cup tonight! Most Israelis don't drink decaf, and I miss being able to swing by Dunkin' Donuts for a cup.
I am a huge breakfast fan, and in Cambridge, we often have breakfast food for lunch and dinner. There really aren't any restaurants or diners in Jerusalem where we can go for that type of food at any time of the day. When the WK asked if there were any all-day breakfast restaurants, I explained that even if there were restaurants that served breakfast food, the Israeli breakfast is not the croissant french toast or blueberry pancakes that we have in the States. An Israeli breakfast typically includes diced fresh vegetables (the most delicious cucumbers, red peppers, tomatoes and some parsley) in a salad, different cheeses, maybe a hard-boiled egg, and some yogurts. Yesterday when we were with friends in Dor, one of the Israeli guys commented that in Hebrew, there is no word for "cereal" - I know, the horror! Instead, Israelis call all cereals "Corn Flakes" and then narrow down from there to Cheerios, Frosties (like Frosted Flakes) and not many other options. Cereal is also not cheap - our Frosties were over 22 shekels - close to $6.
We're preparing for another Shabbat already. We'll probably have some type of chicken, rice and vegetables for dinner tomorrow night. Saturday is my birthday, and I've been told we are having a special dessert after tomorrow night's dinner. We've been invited to Shabbat lunch on Saturday by the older couple across the street (who have a beautiful dog Tsiyon, whom the CK adores), which I am sure will be lovely. And, I've arranged for a babysitter (the 11th grade girl next door) for Saturday night after Shabbat ends, so that Pentheus and I can go out to dinner together! I am very much looking forward, as we have had very little time just the two of us since even before we arrived in Israel.
Later that afternoon, the boys, Pentheus and I walked 20 minutes to "Canyon Hadar" (the Hadar Mall) to do some shopping. The Canyon is technically in Talpiyot, another neighborhood in Jerusalem. The Szold School had given us a list of school supplies for the boys and suggested we go to Chanan (name of the store) in that mall and ask one of clerks for help. Both boys needed "machberot" (notebooks) and "machberot chesbonim" (notebooks for Math). Because the Hebrew language goes from right to left (as opposed to English which goes left to right), it was strange to see the notebooks open from the "wrong" side. Both boys also needed pencils, binders, scissors, rulers, etc. The CW was happy because his list included oil pastels, as well as colored pencils, and the WK was psyched to hear his list included a flash drive. It was funny because as we went through the items on the list, the clerk kept saying to me in Hebrew things like, "Really, you don't have any pencils in the house?" and "Surely, you don't need paper - you must already have some at home." Alas, we had almost nothing in the house except the few markers and crayons that we brought from Cambridge. We bought a LOT of supplies, so many, in fact, that when we paid, the owner of the store threw in a complete art set for the boys to use as a bonus.
Since we arrived in Israel, we've been in search of a good Frisbee. We've purchased a few crappy ones, including one that cracked the moment we took it out of the plastic bag it came in. (I guess we shouldn't have expected much; it was 10 shekels or about $2.50.) Some Cambridge friends who were in Israel on vacation for a few weeks brought the boys' baseball gloves, so we've also been looking for baseballs. Pentheus had been to numerous sports shops but hadn't found anything, so while we were at the Canyon, we checked out other stores with no success. Once we left the Canyon, we saw numerous signs for "Beit Tsatsuiyee" (House of Toys) but despite walking up and down hills and in and out of shopping plazas, we never found the store, and we ran out of time to look further.
We then took a taxi to the Thrifty Rental Car place in Talpiyot to pick up a car for us to drive to Zichron Yaakov on Wednesday. (More on that below.) Arranging for the rental car and picking it up was relatively easy. While we were signing the contract, the female clerk helping us asked where we would be going, how many kilometers we would drive, etc. We told her we were driving to Zichron Yaakov on Wednesday but that night (Tuesday night) we were going to take advantage of having the car to go grocery shopping at one of the big supermarkets in Talpiyot. (So far, we've had to walk to and from the smaller grocery stores in our neighborhood, and then either pull the "agallah" (kind of a backpack on wheels) or arrange for the groceries to be delivered.) At that point, the female clerk sitting next to the clerk who was helping us, asked if we were going to Rami Levy, and if we were, could she get a ride there as she had some shopping to do. I thought she was joking and said, "sure." A few minutes later, she logged out of her computer, went to get her purse and said in Hebrew, "OK, I am ready." So, we took her to Rami Levy with us! I told the boys that I don't think something like that would happen in Cambridge, no matter how nice people are! "Rahk b'yisrael" (Only in Israel)!
We also went to "Big Shop" (that's what it is called in Hebrew, too) to get the boys' uniforms for school. To be fair, the uniform is simply a solid color shirt with an iron-on decal with the school's logo and name. On the first day of school, plus holidays, special days, etc. the boys need to wear white shirts with Szold's decal. Twice a week, the boys have P.E., for which they need to wear light blue shirts with the decal. The other 3 days, the boys can wear any color shirt as long as it has the decal. We ended up buying 14 shirts (7 for each boy) and then standing in a long line for the decals to be ironed on. Even if we had an iron in the dira, everyone has them done at "stations" in the stores. Luckily the shirts are relatively inexpensive - 15.99 shekels/each which is around $4.00 a shirt. Plus, for each 100 shekels you spend, you get one t-shirt for 1.99 shekels or around $0.50.
In Jerusalem (and I think in most other cities, too), public schools are usually 6 days a week - Sunday through Friday with Saturday off for the Jewish Sabbath. The Szold School is Sunday through Friday from 8:05 am - 2:20 pm, with early release at 12:40 pm every Tuesday and Friday. As I wrote earlier, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu is coming to the boys' school for the first day. The kids have to be there by 7:20 am because at 7:30 the doors are locked for security purposes. Parents are not allowed to be there.
I had kind of hoped I could stay for Netanyahu's visit, but I understand why they don't want any parents there. While I am sure the boys will be okay, I also kind of wanted to be around at least for the early part of the day in case they "needed" me. It sounds a bit silly now that I write it out, but we want to do what we can to make the transition to school easier for the boys. To be honest, I'd be very, very nervous going to any new school on the first day, never mind when I don't speak the language! Pentheus and I figure that there will be some acting out in the dira, and we're preparing to be extra patient with the WK and the CK. We know the transitions are hard on all of us.
Yesterday, the family drove to Zicharon Yaakov to visit with some friends with whom Pentheus worked when he lived in Jerusalem and worked for Digital in 1990-1991. The ride took a little more than an hour and a half. Israeli drivers are crazy -- I mean way, way more than Boston-crazy. Cars wove in an out of lanes on the highway while going 160+ km/hour (100+ mph); one driver honked his horn relentlessly to let the car next to his know he was unhappy with his driving skills; people invented lanes that weren't there and tailgated so closely. I have not yet summoned my courage to drive in Israel - le'at, le'at...
The day was a lot of fun. There were five families, with a total of 13 kids, who met at Pentheus's friend's house in Dor, a small town near Zichron Yaakov. Dor is so small that there are only 4 streets, no house numbers, and the town gate closes at 8 pm. We hung out, had tea and lemon squares, and then went to the beach. The beach (actually on the grounds of Kibbutz Nachsholim) was beautiful - soft (although wicked hot) sand with the gorgeous blue/green, temperate Mediterranean Sea water. We were at the beach for a couple of hours. The boys had a great time body-surfing in the water and exploring the nearby fort with all the fathers and other kids.
The plan had been for 4 of the families to have a late lunch together at an Italian restaurant in "downtown" Zichron. The reservation was for 14 people at 2 pm. We didn't even get to the beach until after 12:15, so I knew we wouldn't make it on time. Pentheus's friend had twice changed the reservation, first to 2:30 and then to 3:00. We arrived at the restaurant just after 4 pm, but it didn't seem to be a big deal. His friend had told everyone in advance about the Groupon available for the restaurant, and we used it to get a pretty good deal - 164 shekels for 4 entrees (no kids' meals available at the restaurant anyway), 2 big salads, and lots of "limonana" a lemonade with mint kind of slushie. That's about $10 a person; I don't know how the restaurant makes any money. After dinner, the families wandered around the "midrachov" with shops, restaurants, galleries and parks. The midrachov is essentially a pedestrian mall where no cars are allowed. Of course, we got "gleeda" (ice-cream) which was delicious, and then ended up at a playground.
We drove (okay, actually, Pentheus drove) back to the dira and arrived just after 10 pm. Both boys had fallen asleep in the car. Unfortunately, we couldn't find a parking space close to the dira, and had to wake the boys up to walk a couple of blocks. We were all exhausted after a day in the sun and went to sleep. While we had hoped to sleep late this morning, at around 7:45 am, there was incessant honking outside our open windows. Apparently, the garbage truck had blocked the street, and the cars behind it were determined to keep on the horn until the truck moved. I am not exaggerating to say that the horn lasted for over 3 minutes. So much for sleeping late...
We're a few days into the Hebrew month of Elul. Because Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur come in the next month, Tishrei, it's traditional to blow the shofar (ram's horn) each day to begin preparing spiritually for the big holidays. In Cambridge, if the boys behaved in the morning, they would get to blow our shofar in the morning before camp or school, but we did not bring the shofar to Israel with us. This morning, after all the car honking, WK said we got to hear the "sho-car" instead of the shofar.
Pentheus worked all day today, while the boys and I kept busy. The boys had a shower and bath, which they needed desperately, and we watched a little TV ("The Weakest Link" on the BBC channel). Then we packed sandwiches, pretzels and cold water, and headed to the Moshava park for soccer, table tennis and hanging out. Although we will be glad when the boys have school, I think I will miss being with them as much as I have been in Israel. It's been fun to go to the park, downtown and some of the Jerusalem sites and just to spend time with them.
Late afternoon, Pentheus returned the rental car and then met us on the Emek for dinner. We went back to the Pizza Italie place (where the woman wasn't so nice) because the boys loved the pasta. Afterwards, the boys and Pentheus got more "gleeda" and I had a "natool" (decaf coffee). I've only had decaf coffee a couple of times since we arrived in Jerusalem, and I enjoyed the cup tonight! Most Israelis don't drink decaf, and I miss being able to swing by Dunkin' Donuts for a cup.
I am a huge breakfast fan, and in Cambridge, we often have breakfast food for lunch and dinner. There really aren't any restaurants or diners in Jerusalem where we can go for that type of food at any time of the day. When the WK asked if there were any all-day breakfast restaurants, I explained that even if there were restaurants that served breakfast food, the Israeli breakfast is not the croissant french toast or blueberry pancakes that we have in the States. An Israeli breakfast typically includes diced fresh vegetables (the most delicious cucumbers, red peppers, tomatoes and some parsley) in a salad, different cheeses, maybe a hard-boiled egg, and some yogurts. Yesterday when we were with friends in Dor, one of the Israeli guys commented that in Hebrew, there is no word for "cereal" - I know, the horror! Instead, Israelis call all cereals "Corn Flakes" and then narrow down from there to Cheerios, Frosties (like Frosted Flakes) and not many other options. Cereal is also not cheap - our Frosties were over 22 shekels - close to $6.
We're preparing for another Shabbat already. We'll probably have some type of chicken, rice and vegetables for dinner tomorrow night. Saturday is my birthday, and I've been told we are having a special dessert after tomorrow night's dinner. We've been invited to Shabbat lunch on Saturday by the older couple across the street (who have a beautiful dog Tsiyon, whom the CK adores), which I am sure will be lovely. And, I've arranged for a babysitter (the 11th grade girl next door) for Saturday night after Shabbat ends, so that Pentheus and I can go out to dinner together! I am very much looking forward, as we have had very little time just the two of us since even before we arrived in Israel.
Monday, August 20, 2012
Aizeh Kef Haya Lanu! (What Fun We Had!)
We had a lot of fun tonight! We went to a neighborhood community center in Gonenim (about 15 minute walk from the dira), where they had games for kids, music, and then showed a movie. To be honest, we hadn't realized what the event was when we saw it online; we were pretty sure there would be a movie but pretty unsure of anything else. We saw the event online, packed some sandwiches, snacks and water from the dira, and headed over to the park/community center. The event was handled by the Israeli Tsofim (kind of like the Boy and Girl Scouts in the States), about 15-20 high-school age kids. When the CK needed help walking in a circle on a rope with other kids holding the rope 18 inches above the ground, an 11th grade Tsofa (Girl Scout) helped him while speaking to him in English. When I commented to her in Hebrew that her English was very good, she responded in English, "My Mom would be happy to hear that."
After the WK and CK moved to the "ropes course" where they had to climb through a net of ropes without using their hands, one of the Tsofim asked if the boys would be going to school in Israel. When we said they were going to the Szold School, it turned out that there were about 10-15 Israeli kids at the event who were also going to Szold! We said that the WK was entering 5th grade, and one of the Tsofim said that the younger sister of another Tsofa there was also entering 5th grade. Turns out that the Tsofa who had helped the CK with the rope walk is the oldest daughter of our neighbor who had recommended the Szold School in the first place! No wonder her English is so good - her Mom runs the English program at the school. :-)Small world. Not only was she lovely and kind, but she's interested in babysitting. (For those of you who are wondering, apparently the going rate for babysitters in Jerusalem is 30 shekalim/hour, approximately $7.50.) Even though we didn't meet anyone who would be in the CK's class, I think he still felt a bit better when he knew there were other kids who would be at school with him. I was also happy to see other Szold parents because we needed to know where to buy the school "uniforms" for the boys. The uniform is simply shirts with the name of the school ironed on in the upper left corner, but we had no idea where to get them. Apparently, all of the Szold kids have to wear white shirts with the school name on the first day for Prime Minister Netanyahu's visit and then light blue shirts with the school name the rest of the time.
The movie shown was "Flushed Away" dubbed in Hebrew, with no English subtitles. Both the WK and CK have seen the movie a couple of times (and it's quite possible we have the English DVD in the dira now), so it wasn't too difficult for them to follow, even if they didn't "understand" it. The WK kept whispering the good lines in English before they were said in Hebrew. Maybe this counts as a Hebrew lesson? At one point, the CK leaned over and said, "Ahnee rotzeh mayeem" ("I want water"). Kind of cool that he said it in Hebrew.
Earlier today, the boys and I took the #13 bus downtown and then walked to Machaneh Yehudah, a big outdoor market. I was pleased that I knew which bus to take (although to be fair, Pentheus told me which bus to take, but I didn't need any help figuring out where the correct bus station was - small victories) and that we walked to the market. Someone had told us about Mousseline store, which supposedly has some of the best ice-cream in Jerusalem. Mousseline had been marked on a Macheneh Yehudah map I had, but the store had moved from that location. I was determined to find Mousseline, and after conferring with 5 or 6 different shop keepers, the boys and I enjoyed delicious ice-cream! It's been so long since I have had regular ice-cream, as opposed to the tangy frozen yogurt places in Cambridge, but Mousseline's was great. The Macheneh Yehudah map also has the supposedly best challah place in Jerusalem marked, but we'll have to test that out another day.
Pentheus and I opened a bottle of wine after the boys went to sleep tonight, and we've been checking email on the computers and talking about some of the tasks we need to do. I'm about to pay a bunch of bills online, which is amazing if you think about it. Here I am, sitting in Jerusalem, paying bills on my Netbook, and I just called my sister, using our Cambridge home phone number. Technology indeed.
After the WK and CK moved to the "ropes course" where they had to climb through a net of ropes without using their hands, one of the Tsofim asked if the boys would be going to school in Israel. When we said they were going to the Szold School, it turned out that there were about 10-15 Israeli kids at the event who were also going to Szold! We said that the WK was entering 5th grade, and one of the Tsofim said that the younger sister of another Tsofa there was also entering 5th grade. Turns out that the Tsofa who had helped the CK with the rope walk is the oldest daughter of our neighbor who had recommended the Szold School in the first place! No wonder her English is so good - her Mom runs the English program at the school. :-)Small world. Not only was she lovely and kind, but she's interested in babysitting. (For those of you who are wondering, apparently the going rate for babysitters in Jerusalem is 30 shekalim/hour, approximately $7.50.) Even though we didn't meet anyone who would be in the CK's class, I think he still felt a bit better when he knew there were other kids who would be at school with him. I was also happy to see other Szold parents because we needed to know where to buy the school "uniforms" for the boys. The uniform is simply shirts with the name of the school ironed on in the upper left corner, but we had no idea where to get them. Apparently, all of the Szold kids have to wear white shirts with the school name on the first day for Prime Minister Netanyahu's visit and then light blue shirts with the school name the rest of the time.
The movie shown was "Flushed Away" dubbed in Hebrew, with no English subtitles. Both the WK and CK have seen the movie a couple of times (and it's quite possible we have the English DVD in the dira now), so it wasn't too difficult for them to follow, even if they didn't "understand" it. The WK kept whispering the good lines in English before they were said in Hebrew. Maybe this counts as a Hebrew lesson? At one point, the CK leaned over and said, "Ahnee rotzeh mayeem" ("I want water"). Kind of cool that he said it in Hebrew.
Earlier today, the boys and I took the #13 bus downtown and then walked to Machaneh Yehudah, a big outdoor market. I was pleased that I knew which bus to take (although to be fair, Pentheus told me which bus to take, but I didn't need any help figuring out where the correct bus station was - small victories) and that we walked to the market. Someone had told us about Mousseline store, which supposedly has some of the best ice-cream in Jerusalem. Mousseline had been marked on a Macheneh Yehudah map I had, but the store had moved from that location. I was determined to find Mousseline, and after conferring with 5 or 6 different shop keepers, the boys and I enjoyed delicious ice-cream! It's been so long since I have had regular ice-cream, as opposed to the tangy frozen yogurt places in Cambridge, but Mousseline's was great. The Macheneh Yehudah map also has the supposedly best challah place in Jerusalem marked, but we'll have to test that out another day.
Pentheus and I opened a bottle of wine after the boys went to sleep tonight, and we've been checking email on the computers and talking about some of the tasks we need to do. I'm about to pay a bunch of bills online, which is amazing if you think about it. Here I am, sitting in Jerusalem, paying bills on my Netbook, and I just called my sister, using our Cambridge home phone number. Technology indeed.
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